You Are Not Him
by Trisa Slyne
Summary: Lulu doesn't know who this stranger is pretending to be Mikau but she knows it's not her mate.


_Author's Note: I don't own the rights to Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask._

 **You Are Not Him**

The moment she set eyes on him Lulu knew something was wrong. Everything about him seemed… greener somehow. Not just the loincloth he wore belted around his waist, but his very skin. And since when did Mikau wear gloves or boots?

No. No whoever this imposter was, it wasn't Mikau.

But he was in Mikau's body.

The rest of the members of the Indigo-go's didn't seem to notice, or some part of them was choosing not to. But no one could fool Lulu about her mate.

She escaped out onto the platform out back and wept.

After she was spent, she stared out at the murky ocean. Her eggs had been taken, her lover was a stranger, and she could no longer sing.

She stared and stared and stared at the ocean, at the island nearby, at the pirate fortress in the distance. She stared until a cough behind her had her turning around. Evan, the bandleader, stood there.

"He'll come back," he said in an assuring voice. When she continued to stare at him blankly he frowned. "Did he not…?" he sighed. "Of course he didn't come see you. He couldn't face you until he saved them."

Her eyebrows scrunched together in puzzlement. What was he talking about?

"Mikau set off to the Pirate's Fortress just now… again," Evan elaborated, folding his arms together. "He didn't exactly say what happened the first time he set out… but I'm sure he was scouting the area or doing something useful."

Her eyebrows rose.

"Not like he was debating leaving or anything."

Lulu's eyes tightened. Evan's eyes widened. "I uh… yeah I should go." She nodded and turned back toward the sea, waiting for the inevitable click of the door closing behind her. When she heard it, when she knew she was alone, she fell to her knees. What was going on? Who was this person and what would they do with her eggs?

* * *

Lulu stayed out on the platform for the next few days. Occasionally someone brought her food, which she would nibble on but usually just feed to the nearby fishes. One day, someone came out and just stood in front of her. She sighed. A fan wanting an autograph? A picture? She really didn't feel up to a picture. She glanced up and found her lover's doppelganger before her. So many conflicting emotions welled up in her: hatred, fear, uncertainty… love. He looked so much like Mikau. Her eyes watered. Oh Mikau. She glanced back down.

The stranger held up a finger and fidgeted with his loincloth. She briefly wondered if he was taking it off, which wouldn't be obscene since most Zora didn't wear clothes, but would still be strange now. Instead, he pulled out a single pictograph right in her view. She gasped and reached out for the picture, her other hand held over her thudding chest.

Her children. Her children, hatched and swimming around in a tank similar to the one here. Next to them stood the Professor making a thumbs up gesture at the pictograph box.

The stranger handed her the pictograph and pulled out his- no Mikau's – guitar from its place on his back. Her heart ached at that, knowing somehow she would never see Mikau again. He would never let anyone touch his guitar. The stranger strummed along the guitar a few times then began playing a gentle, rhythmic melody.

The song brought back memories of her mother, also named Lulu, singing to her. As she came out of her memories she realized she was singing along to the tune.

At the end of the song, the platform shook violently until a spray of water shot out and drenched them both. When she looked up again, she found a giant turtle in place of the island- well, not in place of, but under? She could see the palm trees on top of the turtles shell- what she had always mistaken for an island.

The turtle yawned. "I slept quite well!" The turtle blinked and looked directly at her. "I just realized this when I opened my eyes. The passing of days is quite quick. Isn't it, Lulu?"

Lulu stared at the creature, searching her memories. Had they met before?

"Yes, Lulu. It's nothing to be surprised at. Even when my eyes are closed in sleep, I still see everything that occurs in this ocean…"

Lulu still didn't know why this creature spoke as if she should recognize it.

"…Hmm. It seems Lulu is confused. Regrettably, there is no time for idle conversation."

The turtle turned toward the Mikau-look-alike. "Now then, proud Zora warrior…"

Her heart sank. It hadn't called him Mikau. If it knew her name, surely it knew his as well. And it wasn't Mikau. She looked away again but looked back when she heard a strange noise. The strange Zora Warrior was now on the turtles back.

Lulu suddenly felt an urge to call out. "Wait! That song… my mother used to sing it… often…" she faltered, not sure what else she meant to say.

The warrior smiled at her and then they were both moving toward the hurricane barring all access to Great Bay Temple.

Without a second thought, Lulu dove into the water and headed for the Professor's Marine Research Lab.

* * *

The waters turned blue, the Zora Warrior returned, and band practice resumed. Lulu spent all of her free time with her babies so she didn't have to pretend to be avoiding the fake Mikau. Luckily for her, the new Mikau knew none of their songs and had to spend all his free time practicing.

After the concert, Lulu found herself sitting outside the Professor's Marine Research Lab, staring out into the ocean. As she did, she noticed the stranger swim by, headed toward shore. She watched him walk toward a large bump in the sand and stop. He stood there for a long time.

Finally, he took the guitar off his back and stuck it into the sand at the top of the mound. Lulu felt her knees going weak underneath her. The figure placed his hands on either side of his face and a glow emanated from him. Lulu covered her eyes until the glare subsided. Removing her hand, she found Mikau's look-a-like was no longer there. Instead, a human child stood there. He wore a green hat and tunic and brown gloves and boots. And he was crying. She couldn't see the tears, but she could see him wiping his face.

He was just a child.


End file.
